Lily's Last Gift
by Cat97Hermione
Summary: What if Lily Potter had been a little more pro-active? What if she had been a seer? And what if- what if that very same Lily Potter made sure that her only son would be able to cope with the magical world when he was introduced to it? Lily's powerful, and she's leaving a gift for Harry... ON HOLD!
1. Chapter 1

_**Learning Magic**_

"Freak! Clean the attic. I want it spotless by the time Vernon and I are back from the market. If you go anywhere else, you'll be in your cupboard for a month!"

"Yes Aunt Petunia," replied the boy who looked no more than 4.

The boy sighed as he walked up the stairs on his way to the attic. Today was his 6th birthday and he was going to spend it cleaning the attic whilst his cousin Dudley was at the market with his parents. He was lucky he knew it was his birthday at all- he had been asked to bring a copy of his birth certificate to school halfway through last year (his first) and he had snuck a look at it. His aunt would be furious if she found out that he knew.

The boy slowly climbed the ladder up to the attic thinking about how unfair his life was and wishing something would happen, _anyone _would come to show him that he didn't belong here. He knew he didn't, the Dursleys made sure that he knew he wasn't welcome in their house.

The small boy shut the trap door behind him and stood up. He pulled the cord to turn the light on and groaned at the sight of all the dust. The place was horrible. There were boxes of things stacked everywhere and dust coated everything, making the place look black. Even the light bulb was struggling to brighten the attic as it too, was covered in layers of thick dust. He groaned again and set to work. The duster was almost useless within three strokes and the cleaning materials didn't last too long either.

He wasn't sure how long he'd been in the attic, but he was sure it was more than a few hours from what his stomach was telling him when he spotted a trunk in the back corner of the attic. It was different from everything else in the room as it was clean- it looked as though it had only just been placed in the room, but that wasn't possible as it was in a position that was difficult to reach. The boy knew he had to investigate the trunk but he was worried. What if Aunt Petunia realised he had stopped working? But his curiosity was too strong. He made his way over to the trunk slowly, moving many cartes and boxes out of the way as he did so. Finally he made it and he stared at the trunk. It was beautiful. The trunk was a dark wooden one, with edging and clasps that looked suspiciously like gold- but his aunt and uncle couldn't afford that! It was about the size of his cot, but the sink would be a better size comparison. He ran his fingers gently over it, marvelling at the feel of the smooth, cool wood under his fingers when he froze- it had his name on it! _Harry James Potter _had been engraved on the edge. His heart sped up. This trunk was his? He knew it could be a trick, but he _had _to try it! Slowly he unlocked it and lifted the lid. The trunk was _full! _Harry couldn't believe it! But the thing that caught his attention was the letter on top with his name on it again. It wasn't paper, he was sure of that! The ink too was incredible. He knew that no one could write in that way with a normal pen. It looked like something on display in the museum he had been to with his class, but it wasn't that old and it was definitely addressed to him. He slowly undid the seal and opened the letter. He gasped.

_To my son, Harry-_

_I am glad you have found this, as there is something we (your father and I) need you to know and we are sure Petunia won't tell you. Harry, there's no easy way of telling you- magic is real. Your father, James, and I were both magical (witches and wizards) and you, too, are a wizard. This isn't a bad thing, honey. When you are 11 a letter will come to you and invite you to attend __Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry __(we know it's a silly name!) There you will be taught magic and make lots of friends. _

Harry smiled as the letter went on to describe Hogwarts. He was sure it was a joke, but the description sounded nice- surely he was allowed to _imagine _it was real!

…_once you get your wand from Diagon Alley, you won't be allowed to use magic outside of school because the Trace will alert the Ministry and it's illegal for underage witches and wizards to use wands outside of their school. Harry, there is a serious point to this letter, as well. When you were little, a seer made a prophecy- __The one with the power to vanquish the Dark Lord approaches… born to those who have thrice defied him born as the seventh month dies… and the Dark Lord will mark him as his equal, but he will have power the Dark Lord knows not… and either must die at the hands of the other for neither can live while the other survives… the one with the power to vanquish the Dark Lord will be born as the seventh month dies…__ Harry, my son, It is hard for me to tell you this, but the prophecy means you. You see, I am a seer as well. I have seen what is about to happen in a month. The Dark Lord the prophecy refers to is called Lord Voldemort (he's not a Lord, though, really- he just wants to be powerful!) will find us when we are in hiding. I know this has to happen; there is no getting around it so I haven't told James. He is going to kill your father and me but you will survive. The curse meant to kill you rebounds and he will be ripped from his body- but not truly yet. The rebounding curse leaves a scar on your forehead- it looks like a lightning bolt, doesn't it? Dumbledore is going to ignore our will and you will be sent to live with the Dursleys to remain ignorant of the magical world until you are invited to attend Hogwarts. The worst part is the old man has put blocks on your magic to make it harder for you. I don't know what he's playing at! Harry, this is why I have left this trunk for you. It is invisible to everyone that is not a Potter and you can shrink it to fit in your pocket when you close the lid by holding the clasp and saying 'shrink.' It has some books for you to study before you go to Hogwarts, and both your father's and my wands will appear in there once we die. Please, son, learn as much as you can and practice your magic whenever possible (not around the Dursleys) because one day you will face Voldemort in battle, and only you have the power to win. I know you can, Harry, because you are special. Study hard at school but don't be afraid to have fun. (Your father was the biggest prankster at school! He was part of a group that called themselves the marauders- James Potter, Remus Lupin, Sirius Black and Peter Pettigrew, the traitor. Sirius Black was put in the wizarding prison for betraying us, but he was framed by Peter Pettigrew, the real traitor.) When you get to school, if you summon the Marauders Map it will help you find your way around. It's an impressive map, but you can't show anyone. To view the map, tap it and say 'I solemnly swear that I am up to no good' and you will see the map and its… special features. When you wipe it blank, you tap it and say 'mischief managed.' Blame your father for the passwords. Harry, keep the prophecy at the back of your mind, but don't let it take over you. You will have the power to defeat him, and killing that particular… creature… is not murder, it is doing the world an enormous favour. I would prefer it if you didn't murder every Dark person you come across, but that man, or in the heat of battle, you cannot blame yourself, okay? Son, I know you can so this and I don't want to see you in the afterlife until you have lived a respectable amount of time, so be careful. I know that if you are anything like your father trouble will find you wherever you are but you will get ridiculously lucky and escape thousands of times. Have fun, Harry, enjoy life and kick Voldemort's backside as payback from the two of us! _

_Your Mother, _

_Lily Potter _

Harry smiled. The letter had said his parents loved him, and even better, they weren't drunks! They died bravely, not in a car crash like he had been told. Harry was upset that his parents were gone, but he had accepted it long ago and wasn't going to be upset by a letter they had written. They had accepted their fate, so he could to.

Harry was glad that his _mum _had reassured him that killing that Voldemort wasn't murder. Harry was angry at all the things that man had done and he wanted to be ready to fight him as soon as he could. He shrunk the trunk the way his mother had explained to him and put it in his pocket before going back to cleaning the attic.

A few hours later, Harry heard his uncle's car pull into the driveway and heaved a sigh of relief. He had finished the attic half an hour ago but knew that he wasn't allowed to leave it until they got home. Soon enough, his aunt banged on the trapdoor and told him to come out so that she could inspect it. Harry quickly opened the door and climbed down the ladder allowing his aunt to do the inspection. Once she had looked around, she called it _acceptable _and he was relieved. He was going to be allowed dinner tonight.

Harry was impatient the whole night. He wanted to inspect the trunk! He cooked dinner as quickly as he could without making a mess and ate his share quickly. He cleared the table, cleaned the dishes, wiped down the bench and mopped the floor in a daze, the letter his mum had written him going around in his head. He knew it sounded ridiculous. Magic! But he couldn't help but believe her. Lily Potter knew things that she shouldn't and her explanations were much better than his Aunts. Harry decided that he would have to just wait and try this magic before he decided.

Finally, he was sent to his cupboard for the night and Harry pulled the trunk out of his pocket and enlarged it. He opened it and looked inside. He had moved the letter out of the way but the books were all lined up by subject and labelled. They were in sections by subject and had the original owners on the label as well. Transfiguration _1__st__ year- James Potter, 2__nd__ year- James Potter, 3__rd__ year- Sirius Black, 4__th__ year- Remus Lupin, 5__th__ year- James Potter _and so on. Defence Against the Dark Arts, Herbology, Care of Magical Creatures and Muggle Studies textbooks were mostly owned by James Potter originally, with a few from Sirius and Remus. They all had notes scribbled in them about both the subject and more trivial things. The 1-7th year History of Magic, Potions, Charms, Astronomy, Divination, Arithmancy and Ancient Runes had all once belonged to his mother and had her notes written in neatly as well. There were also books on Occlumency and Legilimency with a note telling Harry that Dumbledore was a master Legilimens so he would need to study both subjects well before he started Hogwarts. Hogwarts: A History was in the trunk next to Quidditch Through the Ages- his mother had said that if James fond the trunk he wouldn't let it go until that book was included. Harry saw books on wandless magic and after reading the note saying that it couldn't be traced he knew it was going to be high on his priority list. Finally, there were books on how to behave like a pureblood, and other aspects of magical society and Harry was glad about that. He didn't want to alienate himself from the magical world because he didn't know of their customs. Harry then noticed a small area of the trunk not containing books and he looked at it. He smiled gently when he saw his parent's wands and read the note saying that he could use them until he turned 11- when the Trace would kick in and another warning about not using magic near muggles. Harry then saw the thing buried at the bottom and gasped- a huge stack of magical photographs and notes telling him who everyone was. At the bottom of the photos there was a note telling Harry about the second invisible compartment and how to open it. It was empty, though, and Harry shrunk the trunk and put it underneath the cot for the night wondering what he was going to put in the second compartment and thinking about tomorrow, when he would finally begin to learn magic. He was definitely convinced that it was real.

Harry knew he was smart, very smart, but he also knew that he had to hide his brains from the Dursleys as there would be consequences. Harry could remember everything he read, saw, heard, etcetera word for word and understood things very easily. He had spent lunchtimes during his first year of primary school in the library studying the older year's coursework and he was sure he could easily graduate from primary school if he wanted to. He could also read books extremely quickly and so he was unsurprised when it didn't take him long to grasp everything his magical textbooks were trying to explain, either. Harry learnt the _Lumos _charm within a week and was using it almost nightly to read for longer. He had held both of his parents' wands and they both felt foreign in his hand, but his mother's was slightly friendlier. He wondered if it was because Lily Potter had meant to give him the wand, but he shook that thought away quickly. It was true, but Harry didn't know that. Harry was disappointed that he couldn't brew potions as they sounded interesting, but it was dangerous and there was no room in his cupboard. He shuddered at the thought of Aunt Petunia coming into the cupboard in the middle of a potion.

Harry had been studying magic for a month at night, but he already loved it. Each subject was in his opinion brilliant for different reasons and he was good at every subject, although some stood out more than others for him. Charms and Transfiguration came naturally to him and he understood Potions without much effort. Defence Against the Dark Arts and Occlumency, however, were even better. They were… _instinctual. _The first time he had read about Occlumency, he couldn't wait to try it and began to build his mindscape. He built his dream castle- it was huge, with lots of large, opulent rooms. (including indoor swimming pools and a Quidditch pitch) His favourite room was the library as it contained a copy of every book he had ever read and was growing rapidly. It also helped him to remember facts, he was sure. In a small, insignificant cupboard, held the greatest treasure of his mind, though. The cupboard under the stairs contained himself- it held his thoughts, emotions, memories and feelings. The only part of the castle that Harry disliked was the attic- it contained an evil-feeling black, tar-like substance. Harry was unable to remove it from his mind no matter what he tried so he had carefully separated it from the rest of his mind and locked it in the attic hoping he would never have to go near it again. Harry placed many muggle traps in the castle designed to capture or explode unwanted visitors. Outside the castle had huge grounds and the edge of the grounds was where visitors would enter. The castle was surrounded by a large forest teeming with dangerous magical and non-magical creatures ready and trained to attack any visitors apart from Harry and muggle traps were placed everywhere outside as well. Harry's favourite defence, though, was little clones of himself armed with wands patrolling the perimeter of the castle. They were all _very _skilled in offensive magic considering they were all 6 years old. Harry was sure that people would have a hard time entering his mind, but he had no way of finding out until he got to Hogwarts.

Harry studied magic whenever he could and his accidental magic was giving him a lot of time. He was constantly hungry but magic certainly made up for it. 2 months after finding the trunk, Harry came across a passage in one of the books he was reading, and was shocked. It said that the healthier a body was, the healthier the magic. He knew he wasn't healthy! It also said that being fit helped your magic develop and he knew that he needed to do everything he could to encourage his magic to develop as he had extensive blocks trying to do the opposite. Harry then realised that if he was going to have to battle one of the strongest wizards in the world, he wanted to be able to dodge curses. He might only be 6, but he could already tell that the shield charm he was trying to learn definitely wouldn't be able to block everything. He shuddered.

The next morning, Harry began his exercise. The Dursleys gave him chores to do and had always told him to finish them quickly and get out of the house. So he did. When his aunt wasn't looking, he used his wandless magic to speed up the process and ran out the door. He ran around the streets until he was exhausted before going to the park where he did push ups and sit ups. Once he was done he caught his breath and ran to school. He was bored at school for the day, making sure everything he did was at a low standard so that he didn't outperform Dudley- except in Latin. He didn't care what the Dursleys said; he was going to do well in that class as it was important. When school was finished he went for another run, exercised at the park and ran back to the Dursleys, still beating Dudley to the door. He laughed to himself. He had just gone on a large run, pushing his body to the limit, went to the park, came home and _still _beat his cousin who had come straight away. It really said something about the older boys' weight and fitness. Harry went inside and completed his chores as quickly as he could without making his Aunt suspicious and headed out the door again. He did the same routine but was noticeably slower by the end and he blamed his earlier runs.

That routine went on for a week when he was finally spotted by the owner of the martial arts studio. The man asked Harry what he was doing and Harry told him that he needed to get fit. His dad was a 'soldier' that was killed in war, as was his mother. He now lived with his Aunt and Uncle but he knew that one day he too, would be sent off toy war and he wanted to be fit enough and have the stamina required to stay alive. The man bought his story.

"Why don't you attend classes at my studio? Martial Arts would do you good," said the man musingly.

"Yes, sir, I can't afford it, though. My aunt and uncle want me to learn to be independent so they won't pay for things like this, they say I need to earn the money," said Harry nervously.

"Hmmm… can't afford it. Normally I offer jobs to people who cannot afford lessons, but you might be a little young for that," said the man.

"Sir, I am young in body, but I can handle having a job if it means being allowed lessons here!" said Harry excitedly. This was _exactly _what he needed.

"How much pocket money do you get, kid?"

"None, sir."

"Hmmm… I can give you a job, I'll pay you $10 an hour but you will also get lessons. You'll be cleaning the studios, collecting mail and doing anything else I ask you to do, unless you aren't capable of doing that. Do you want it?"

"Yes, sir, it sounds brilliant!" said Harry happily.

"Okay, how about you do an hour before school, go home for an hour then come back and spend another 4 at the studio every day, can you do that? We can add an hour of lessons in that time, but call it a job. Can you do that?"

"Sir, it sounds perfect."

"Will your Aunt and Uncle be alright with that?"

"Sir, I am sure they will be fine."

"Okay, kid, come to the studio the morning that you want to start." With that, the man walked away and Harry restarted his run thinking about how _well _that had turned out. He was going to get lessons in Martial Arts which would be perfect and he was going to be paid a ridiculously good amount of money. $50 a _day! _The man was crazy! But Harry knew what he was going to do with the money. He had recently discovered a spell called _Stasis _and had placed it in the second compartment of his trunk. He had been sneaking food and storing it in there, where it stayed fresh but this would mean he could buy food and soon would be eating enough. He could always tell Aunt Petunia he was being paid $10 every day. She would take that amount off him but at least it would mean she would let him out of the cupboard every day so the man didn't suspect her of anything.

That night, when harry was sent to his cupboard, he was so happy that he knew it was time to try out the charm he had been itching to do ever since he had read about it the week before. He gathered up all of the happiness and excitement he felt and picked up the wand.

"Expecto Patronum!" he said quietly but forcefully as he couldn't let the Dursleys hear him. He watched as a bright light galloped out of his wand. Harry was shocked. Adult wizards supposedly had trouble with that charm, and yet he, a 6 year old, was standing in a cramped cupboard with a bright stag. He grinned. He knew that there was no way he should be able to do anything that he did- he'd been training in magic for 2 months! But he was so determined to learn quickly and was older than 6 in his mind thanks to both his treatment at the Dursleys and learning the prophecy.

The next morning, Harry was outside the martial arts studio at 7am, breathing heavily having just gone for his run. The man let him in and told him what was happening. Harry was shocked. The owner was a squib and had learned about Harry and wanted to help him however he could. He could see that Harry needed the money badly and that he was not being treated well by his relatives but wasn't going to interfere unless Harry asked him to. Harry would be working at the studio in the mornings for an hour, doing what Harry had come in expecting to do- clean, collect the mail and so on. When Harry returned in the afternoon, he would join the Karate, Judo, Kung-Fu, Tai-Kwon-Do and other martial arts classes depending on what was on that day for his age group. Those classes went for an hour each day. He would then spend the remaining 3 hours having private lessons with the instructors that were free. Harry was shocked. These people were going to do so much for him! His mother's letter hadn't mentioned that he would be famous, either, which came as a bit of a shock to Harry who wasn't sure he wanted that. Harry had also learnt that on Saturdays they ran gymnastics classes which he would be attending and Sundays were for dance classes. He then learned that he would be attending the dance classes no matter what- dancing was important for all purebloods to learn and would help his martial arts by giving him better footwork and helping him to make the movements flow. His two arguments of not being a pureblood and gymnastics doing the same thing were ignored. Harry was then put to work for the next half an hour before he left to go to school.

It was Friday, so when he came back, Kung Fu was offered for his age group. Harry was given his uniform and a white belt before he joined in on learning the form. To his delight it was fun but hard and the private lessons were even harder- but even more enjoyable as well. He was extremely disappointed when he had to leave. His Aunt had not noticed his absence and Harry was able to sneak his uniform into his cupboard without much notice.

Saturday, Harry did his chores as quickly as possible and was kicked out of the house. He raced to the studio as soon as that happened. Harry was given a gymnastics uniform and once again joined his age classes before beginning the private ones. Harry found that this was slightly easier than Martial Arts and within the hour was allowed to join the Level 1 class instead of the Rec class most people his age went to. The private lessons were much harder but Harry knew he was really going to enjoy his Saturdays from now on. The vault in particular was enjoyed.

Sunday came, and Harry had been dreading it. However, he realised very quickly that it was actually enjoyable. He was the only boy in a classroom full of girls but that didn't bother him. He wore his gymnastics leotard (which _did _bother him- he thought they were girls wear.) and joined in quickly. He realised very quickly that dance was one of the few things that he _wasn't _a natural at, but enjoyed it all the same. The next week went quickly and Harry was soon acquainted with his new classes and found them all different but enjoyable. The next Sunday came and Harry was ready to make his first move. He had been carrying his shrunken trunk around in his pocket every day to avoid carrying or wearing his uniforms to his Aunt's house- he knew they would not be accepted. So Harry excused himself from Dance an hour early knowing that his Aunt would not be happy if he came home any later than he had the week before. He ran to the shopping centre and flew around. He picked a huge amount of fruit and vegetables, bread, cheese, butter and spreads. Muesli, snack bars, milk and other packaged foods made it into his trolley. He knew it wasn't all healthy food, but he couldn't cook in his cupboard unless he used magic which was why a small about of meats also went in. He didn't plan on eating it much, but he wanted to know it was there. The deli supplied him with cold meats and olives. Once he had bought the food that he hoped would last him a few months, he went into an empty alleyway and put it all quickly into the second compartment of his trunk hoping that no one had noticed. They hadn't. He then ran back to the Dursleys hoping that he wasn't late.


	2. Chapter 2

_**Diagon Alley **_

The next 4 years went slowly for Harry who was anxious to start Hogwarts, although he was nervous about meeting Dumbledore and Voldemort.

Harry had kept up with his martial arts, gymnastics and dance, and was at the highest levels for each martial arts class. The owner had been right when he said that both gymnastics and dance would help him with them. He was no longer terrible at Dance- in fact when they had to dance with partners all the girls wanted to be with him as he was the best.

He had gone to the public library a few months after starting classes at the studio and had borrowed several language translation books and taken extensive notes on them. He could now read and write in Greek, Italian, French, Bulgarian, Spanish, Mandarin, German, Malaysian, Latin and Gaelic although he was still unsure about his speaking and listening skills as he had never heard anyone speak those languages.

By the time Dudley was almost 11, he was sure that he could pass his NEWT exams with flying colours in all subjects… although he was still having trouble with Divination as he wasn't a seer.

Dudley's 11th Birthday was a nightmare for Harry.

It had begun with Aunt Petunia knocking on his cupboard door, and escalated from there.

"Up! Get Up! Now!" Harry groaned internally. He had been reading and didn't want to stop.

"Up!" screeched Aunt Petunia. Harry heard her walk to the kitchen and put the kettle on as he slowly put the book away. His Aunt was back outside the door.

"Are you up yet?" she demanded.

"Nearly," said Harry exasperatedly.

"Well, get a move on, I want you to cook the breakfast. Don't you dare let anything burn, I want everything to be perfect on Duddy's birthday." Harry groaned. How could he have forgotten about Dudley's birthday? Harry went down the hall into the kitchen. The table was almost hidden under all of Dudley's birthday presents and Harry could telly that he had gotten everything that he asked for and more.

Uncle Vernon entered the kitchen as Harry was turning over the bacon.

"Comb your hair!" he barked, by way of a morning greeting. About once a week, Uncle Vernon looked over the top of his newspaper and shouted that Harry needed a haircut. Harry barely managed to stop himself from rolling his eyes, as he knew that a haircut would make no difference, Aunt Petunia had proven that when she shaved him almost bald except for a fringe which she had left to hide his scar. His accidental magic had taken care of it, and he was given a week in the cupboard knowing there was no use in explaining why it had grown back as she already knew about magic.

Harry was frying the eggs when Dudley came into the kitchen with Aunt Petunia. Harry had never really gotten over how different the two of them looked. Dudley was short, blond with a large face, not much neck, and small, watery blue eyes and weighed more than a baby whale. Aunt Petunia was tall and bony with a neck that looked twice as long as it should be.

Harry put the plates of bacon, eggs, hash browns, baked bean and toast carefully on the table which was difficult as there was hardly any room. Dudley had been counting his presents and his face had fallen.

"Thirty-six," he said glumly, looking up at his parents. "That's two less than last year." Harry mentally rolled his eyes, thanking occlumency for the fact that he had managed to not do it physically.

"…haven't counted Auntie Marge's present, see, it's under this big one from mummy and daddy," Aunt Petunia was saying.

Harry watched as they made arrangements to buy Dudley more presents while they were out and Dudley began to open his presents. Halfway through, the phone rang and Aunt Petunia went to answer it. A few presents later, she came back in looking nervous. Harry heard her tell Uncle Vernon that Mrs. Figg had broken her leg and wouldn't be able to take him. He heard them begin to trade suggestions as to where he could go and Harry finally decided to intervene when it sounded as though he was going to be locked in the car.

"You could just leave me here…" he suggested. Aunt Petunia looked as though she had swallowed a lemon.

"And find the place in ruin when we get home?"

"You could lock me in my cupboard, Ma'am." Here, Uncle Vernon got an evil smirk in place.

"Boy! Go to your cupboard. We're not having freaks like you blowing up the place while we're gone. I'm going to lock you in there," he jeered and Harry worked hard not to roll his eyes. He had suggested it to them! But he didn't mind as he had been looking forward to this part of the day for a while.

When the Dursleys left the house, Harry pulled out his wand. He had wanted to use this spell for years but he couldn't do it unless the Dursleys were all out of the house for the day and today was his first opportunity.

"Particularum Revelio!" Harry bit his lip to stop himself from screaming in pain. The spell tore through him, getting more painful until he wasn't sure he could hold it anymore and wanted to scream when it began to die down until the only things he could feel was a dull ache throughout his whole body and a sharp, burning pain around his left bicep. He quickly drank down as much water as he could from his trunk before he lifted the left sleeve of his shirt to see what the result was and gasped. There were four rings tattooed around his upper arm. Green, Blue, Red and White bands. His elements. He wasn't sure why he'd even tried the Elemental revealing spell as very few people were elementals, but he had wanted to anyway. To find out that he controlled all four elements was mind-blowing. That was unheard of! There had been speculation about Merlin controlling multiple elements but it had never been proven.

"Wow," breathed Harry, "I almost feel sorry for Voldemort!"

Harry was disappointed that he couldn't begin to learn about his elemental powers yet, but his parents hadn't put anything in his trunk relating to it as it was such as rare ability.

That week was the last week of primary school and Harry only just graduated, his Latin mark the only thing keeping him from having to repeat Primary school. He winced when he saw that, it would have been a lot harder to go to Hogwarts if he was asked to repeat Primary. Maybe he had 'dumbed down' his marks a little too much.

The holidays started and Harry spent as much time as he could at the studio, preparing to leave. The owner James was sad to see him getting ready to leave and made him promise to write to him while he was at Hogwarts which Harry happily agreed to do.

Finally, his letter came. Uncle Vernon had sent him to fetch the mail when he saw the parchment with shining green ink on it. It was the final proof. Harry grinned happily before hiding it in his cupboard on the way back to the kitchen. It would do him no good for his relatives to find it before he had a chance to reply.

Breakfast passed slowly for Harry, as did his morning chores. He went back to his cupboard once they were done and stared reverently at the letter before finally plucking up the courage to open it.

_HOGWARTS SCHOOL OF WITCHCRAFT AND WIZARDRY_

_Headmaster: Albus Dumbledore (Order of Merlin, First Class, Grand Sorc., Chf. Warlock, Supreme Mugwump, International confed. of Wizards.)_

_Dear Mr. Potter,_

_We are pleased to inform you that you have been accepted at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry. Please find enclosed a list of all necessary books and equipment. _

_Term begins on September 1. We await your owl by no later than July 31. _

_Yours sincerely,_

_Minerva McGonagall,_

_Deputy Headmistress. _

Harry then pulled out the second parchment and scanned it.

_HOGWARTS SCHOOL OF WITCHCRAFT AND WIZARDRY_

_UNIFORM:_

_First-year students will require:_

_Three sets of plain work robes (black)_

_One plain pointed hat (black) for day wear_

_One pair of protective gloves (dragonhide or similar)_

_One winter cloak (black, silver fastenings)_

_Please note that all pupils' clothing should carry name tags_

_COURSE BOOKS:_

_All students should have a copy of the following:_

_The standard book of spells (Grade 1) by Miranda Goshawk_

_A History of Magic by Bathilda Bagshot_

_Magical Theory by Adalbert Waffling_

_A Beginners' Guide to Transfiguration by Emeric Switch_

_One Thousand Magical Herbs and Fungi by Phyllida Spore_

_Magical Drafts and Potions by Arsenius Jigger_

_Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them by Newt Scamander_

_The Dark Forces: A Guide to Self-Protection by Quentin Trimble_

_OTHER EQUIPMENT:_

_Wand_

_Cauldron (pewter, standard size 2)_

_Set glass or crystal phials_

_Telescope set_

_Brass scales_

_Students may also bring and owl OR a cat OR a toad_

_PARENTS ARE REMINDED THAT FIRST YEARS ARE NOT ALLOWED THEIR OWN BROOMSTICKS _

When he was finally kicked out, he shoved the letter and his trunk in his pocket before sprinting the several blocks to the studio. His grin told James everything he needed to know.

"Have you replied yet?" he asked

"No, I haven't even shown it to Vernon and Petunia, I didn't want it confiscated," said Harry sheepishly.

"I've got some ink and parchment out the back, and an owl so you can reply now if you want."

"Thanks, James!" said Harry happily. He was soon seated at a desk preparing to write his acceptance. He had used ink and parchment several times getting used to writing with them but the quill still felt foreign in his hand.

_To Professor McGonagall,_

_I am excited and ready to attend Hogwarts this year. Would it be possible for you to send someone to explain to my Aunt and Uncle about magic, as they are not all that accepting at the moment. Thank you for the offer!_

_Harry Potter._

Harry sighed as he finished writing the note as he hated to sound childish but it would look strange to send a formal letter. He rolled it up and gave it to James' owl, Sapiens, and watched her fly out the window with it. Then he jumped up and began working in the studio hoping to master all of the martial arts before leaving to Hogwarts, which he was very close to doing.

The next day, Harry was very excited. Hagrid was coming today! He remembered seeing pictures of the man from the stack of photographs in his trunk but he knew he would have to act as though he had never met the man before. Then, there was a knock on the door. Harry smirked, put his trunk in his pocket and went into the kitchen as his aunt opened the door. He heard Hagrid insulting his aunt and making his way into the house. He smirked before adopting a polite expression.

"'Arry! Las' time I saw you, you was only a baby," said Hagrid. "Yeh look a lot like yer dad, but yeh've got yer mum's eyes." Harry beamed at the large man.

"You're Hagrid! I remember you and a flying motorbike!" said Harry happily. "Are we going to get my school supplies, sir?" Aunt Petunia chocked from the doorway.

"You knew?" she asked faintly. "You _knew?_"

"Of course, Auntie, the letter came yesterday and I asked Hagrid to come and explain because you weren't taking it well, don't you remember?"

"Of- of course I do, we are not sending him off to that school, and my husband and I have already made this decision."

"Auntie, you could get rid of me for 10 months of the year if you send me there, and when I come home you could always ask me to stay in my room except for when I come out for work if you like," he said, "and I could stay at a motel until school starts this year, you said I have money in my parents vault," he said carefully. Aunt Petunia spluttered. Finally, she came to a decision.

"Fine," she spat. "You can go. I don't want to see any of your _supplies _around the house, you will pay with your parents' money, not ours and you _will _find that motel to stay at. I am not going to see you again until the end of this school year.

"Thank you, Auntie!" said Harry pretending to beam at her. Harry followed Hagrid out the door and watched as he flagged down the infamous Knight Bus that his mother had complained about, but neglected to tell him how to summon. By then end of the trip, Harry was glad that she hadn't told him, it was horrible! They got off, Hagrid was looking as sick as Harry felt. They walked for a block when Hagrid suddenly stopped causing Harry to almost walk into him. Harry cursed himself for letting himself lose awareness of his surroundings.

"This is it," Hagrid was saying, "The Leaky Cauldron. It's a famous place." It was a tiny, grubby looking pub and Harry would have totally ignored it if Hagrid hadn't pointed it out. The other people on the street didn't seem to notice it, the bookshop and record shop on either side of it took their eyes, almost as if the pub was invisible to everyone except himself and Hagrid. Which, he reminded himself, it probably was. Hagrid quickly steered him inside.

For a famous place, it was very dark and shabby. It had small groups of people sitting in groups chattering and the noise brought a slight smile to Harry's face- everyone was _happy. _He knew it was silly, but he still felt responsible for everyone- he had to get rid of Voldemort before he could destroy too many more people's lives. When they walked in, the chatter died down a little and the barman- Tom, Harry remembered, came up to Hagrid.

"Usual, I presume, Hagrid?" he said happily.

"Can't, Tom, I'm on Hogwarts business," said Hagrid a little too loudly, in Harry's opinion.

"Good Lord," said Tom faintly, "is this- can this be-?" The Leaky Cauldron was suddenly silent as everyone turned to look at them. Harry cursed internally.

"Bless my soul," whispered Tom, "Harry Potter… what an honour." He rushed towards Harry and seized his hand, tears in his eyes.

"Welcome Back, Mr. Potter, welcome back." The next moment, harry found himself shaking hands with everyone in the shabby pub.

"Doris Crockford, Mr. Potter, I can't believe I am meeting you at last."

"So proud, Mr. Potter, I'm just so proud."

"Always wanted to shake your hand- I'm all of a flutter."

"Delighted, Mr. Potter, just can't tell you. Diggle's the name, Dedalus Diggle." Harry recognised the man but felt it would be smarted to stay silent. Harry shook hands again and again- Doris Crockford kept coming back for more. It took over 10 minutes for Hagrid to call them all off- he looked to be enjoying it far too much.

"Must get on- Lots ter buy. Come on, Harry." Harry sent silent thanks to the man as he followed him out the back to a small courtyard. Harry wasn't sure about the Professor Quirrel he had met, the stutter didn't sound completely convincing. While Harry was stewing over Quirrel, Hagrid was looking for his umbrella. He then began counting bricks in the wall above the trash can.

"Three up… two across," he muttered. "Right. Stand back, Harry." He tapped the wall three times with the point of the umbrella. Harry watched in amazement as the archway formed into Diagon Alley.

"Welcome," said Hagrid, grinning at Harry's expression, "to Diagon Alley." They stepped through the archway and Harry turned around just in time to see it shrink instantly back into a solid wall.

The sun was shining brightly on a stack of cauldrons outside of the nearest shop. Cauldrons- All sizes- Copper, brass, pewter, silver- Self-Stirring- Collapsible, said a sign hanging on the door next to them. Harry was amazed at the Alley. Everywhere he looked there was something new and interesting to see. The shops and the things outside them were unlike anything he had ever seen except for in his photographs and the people doing their shopping were strange as well. There were shops selling robes, telescopes and strange silver instruments Harry had never seen before. There were windows stacked full of barrels of bat spleens and eels' eyes, tottering piles of spell books, quills, and rolls of parchment, potion bottles, globes of the moon… Hagrid announced that they had reached Gringotts and Harry looked up at the tall white building towering over the rest of the alley shops. Harry looked directly at the engraving on the doorway;

_Enter, Stranger, but take heed_

_Of what awaits the sin of greed,_

_For those who take but do not earn,_

_Must pay dearly in their turn._

_So if you seek beneath our floors_

_A treasure that was never yours,_

_Thief, you have been warned, beware_

_Of finding more than treasure there._

Harry shivered. One look at the goblins guarding the doorway and he was sure the poem was not exaggerating. The goblins were ruthless creatures. The goblins bowed them through and they were soon standing in a large marble hall. Hundreds of goblins were working on various different jobs around the hall and Hagrid moved towards the nearest counter, with Harry trailing behind.

"Morning," said Hagrid to a free goblin. "We've come to take some money outta Mr. Harry Potters safe."

"You have his key, Sir?" something about the way the goblin said 'sir' made Harry sure he wasn't trying to be polite… it sounded like a degrading term. Almost the way his Uncle said 'Freak.'

"Got it here somewhere," said Hagrid. Harry watched as the massive man emptied his pockets to find his key. Harry was astonished at some of the things he carried in his pocket.

"Got it," said Hagrid finally, holding up a tiny golden key. The goblin looked at it closely.

"That seems to be in order." Hagrid watched as Hagrid made arrangements to visit another vault, vault 713 and a goblin named Griphook was called to escort them to both vaults. They followed the goblin through a door off to the side and into a corridor with railway tracks on the floor. Griphook whistled and a small mine cart came hurtling towards them. They clambered in- Hagrid with some difficulty- and they were off.

Harry was grinning within a few seconds. The cart was fast! He felt the wind go through his hair and sting his eyes and sat back to enjoy the ride. If this is what the Gringotts carts felt like, he was going to have to try flying and Quidditch, he decided. When the cart slowed down and then stopped beside a small door in the passage wall, Hagrid got out on shaking knees and leaned against the wall. Harry was still grinning. Soon, Griphook opened the door. A huge amount of green smoke came billowing out, and as it cleared, Harry gasped. He had known he had money but this was just his trust account and it was more than he expected to have in the family vault! There was mounds of gold galleons. Columns of sickles. Heaps of little bronze knuts.

"All yours," said a smiling Hagrid who still looked a little weak. Harry piled a large amount of it into a small bag and listened to Hagrid explaining the monetary system, which Harry didn't mind as he wanted to check the books were right.

"…The gold ones are galleons," he was saying, "Seventeen silver sickles to a galleon and twenty-nine knuts to a sickle, it's easy enough. Right, Harry, that's more than enough, we'll keep the rest safe for yeh." He turned to Griphook. "Vault seven hundred and thirteen now, please, and can we go more slowly?" Harry chuckled when they were informed that there was one speed only.

They were getting deeper and deeper into Gringotts, and gathering speed quickly. Harry was relishing the feeling of the cold, almost freezing now, air as they went around excessively tight corners. All too soon, they were standing outside vault 713. It had no keyhole.

"Stand Back," said Griphook importantly. They watched as the goblin unlocked the door by stoking it and listened as he explained what would happen if a human tried to do that- sounding far too excited about it, in Harry's opinion. He watched as Hagrid picked up the only item in the vault- an entirely unremarkable grubby package. Harry knew that it was probably wrapped that way to stop people from noticing it, but couldn't help but feel slightly disappointed as he watched it disappear into Hagrid's coat. They got quickly back into the cart and were soon back blinking in the bright midday sunlight.

"Might as well get yer uniform," said Hagrid, nodding towards the robe shop he had spotted earlier, Madam Malkin's Robes for All Occasions.

"Listen, Harry, would yeh mind if I slipped off fer a pick-me-up in the Leaky Cauldron? I hate them Gringotts carts." Harry almost rolled his eyes. The man was understating when he said he hated the carts- he was still a violent green colour. Harry nodded and walked into the shop alone.

Madam Malkin spotted him almost immediately. Smiling, she walked up to him.

"Hogwarts, dear?" she asked when Harry began to speak.

"Yes, Ma'am," he replied.

"Got the lot here- another young man being fitted up just now, in fact." In the back, a young boy with a pale, pointed face was standing on a footstool, sneering at the assistant that was pinning up long, black robes for him. Madam Malkin soon set Harry up on a stool next to him and began to pin a new set of robes to the right length.

"Hullo," said the boy. "Hogwarts, too?"

"Yes," said Harry, instantly disliking him.

"My father's next door buying my books and my mother's up the street looking at wands," drawled the boy, sounding bored. "Then I'm going to drag them off to look at racing brooms. I don't see why first years can't have their own. I think I'll bully father into buying me one and I'll smuggle it in somehow." Harry was being reminded of Dudley.

"Have you got your own broom?"

"not yet," said Harry, knowing the boy would not realise he had answered as he wasn't interested- he just asked to seem slightly more polite. He wanted to brag about himself- that was obvious.

"play Quidditch at all?"

"I'm looking forward to playing at Hogwarts," said Harry, knowing a 'no' was not an option at the moment.

"_I _do- Father says it's a crime if I'm not picked to play for my house, and I must say, I agree. Know what house you'll be in yet?"

"Either a Ravenclaw or Gryffindor, although Slytherin is a possibility, as is Hufflepuff, but it's the least likely. Both my parents were in Gryffindor," said Harry, wanting to make the boy either be quiet or at least hear someone else's voice for a change.

"I'm going to be I Slytherin," said the boy, giving no sign that he had heard Harry. "Imagine being in Hufflepuff, I'd leave, wouldn't you?"

"No," said Harry sharply, "loyalty is an admirable trait, as is being hardworking." The boy finally acknowledged that Harry had spoken, to stare at him.

"What? Hufflepuff is for the leftovers, that's what my father said. Slytherin is or the purebloods, Ravenclaw is for all the nerds, Gryffindor for all the reckless people and Hufflepuff is for the leftovers." Harry gave a fake laugh.

"You actually believe that? Slytherin is for all the ambitious people, who are sly and cunning. Ravenclaw takes people who value knowledge. Gryffindor house takes all the brave people, but the bravery is not always obvious at first sight. Hufflepuff takes all those with loyalty and value hard work."

"Really?" asked the boy sceptically. "My father never said that…" he trailed off.

"My name's Malfoy, Draco Malfoy. What's yours?" Harry never got to answer, though, as Madam Malkin announced that his uniform was ready and Harry jumped down from the stool eager to get away from Malfoy.

Harry left the shop rather quickly and found Hagrid walking to the store with two ice creams in hand. Harry ate his quickly, enjoying the flavour of his first ever ice cream and was disappointed when it was finished.

They stopped to buy parchment and quills. Harry was excited to find a bottle if ink that changed colour as you wrote. They bought Harry's school books at a shop called Flourish and Blotts where the shelves were stacked to the ceiling with books from as large as paving stones bound in leather to books the size of postage stamps covered in silk. Harry was ecstatic to see so many books. Even Dudley, who never willingly picked up a book would be excited to get his hands on some of these. Harry was beginning to become suspicious of Hagrid when the man made sure that Harry only bought school textbooks and nothing else- the man dragged him away from _Curses and Countercurses (Bewitch your friends and Befuddle your Enemies with the Latest Revenges: Hair-Loss, Jelly-legs, Tounge-Tying and Much, Much More) _by Professor Vindictus Viridian. Harry then knew that he would have to get only things that Hagrid suggested- which were only the things on his list. They got his cauldron, a nice set of scales for weighing potions ingredients and a collapsible bras telescope. Then they visited the apothecary which was interesting, although rather smelly. Barrels of slimy things were stood on the floor, jars of herbs, dried roots and bright powders lined the walls; bundles of feathers, strings of fangs and snarled claws hung from the ceiling. Harry watched as Hagrid bought him a supply of basic potions ingredients. Once they were out of the shop, Hagrid checked the list again.

"Just a wand left… Oh, an' I gotta get you an early birthday present. Tell yeh what, I'll get yer an animal. Not a toad, they went outta fashion years ago. An' I don't like cats, they make me sneeze. I'll get yer an owl- all the kids want them and they're dead useful- carry yer post and everything." Harry mentally cheered. He had planned on getting an owl but was worried that Hagrid would be suspicious when he got to school. But he fixed the problem instead!

20 minutes later, the pair of them left Eeylops Owl Emporium, Harry with a large snowy owl with bright amber eyes in a cage tucked under his arm. Then they made their way to the wand maker, Ollivanders and Harry was nervous. He listened to the man speech about wands and who had owned which wand. He watched Ollivander pick out wand after wand until he finally found the 'right' one- but Harry wasn't sure- he didn't feel an overly strong connection to it, it was closer to that of his father's wand. He paid the money anyway, and planned to come back to another wandmaker and get a custom wand. He had a feeling that the man had plotted with someone to give him the brother wand of Voldemort.

All too soon, the sun hung low in the afternoon sky and Hagrid handed Harry his ticket for the Hogwarts Express and left him at the Leaky Cauldron after helping him to reserve a room. Harry went to bed feeling extremely cheerful. 


	3. Chapter 3

_**Platform 9 and ¾**_

Then next morning, Harry woke early feeling excited, although it took him a moment to realise why. He was in Diagon Alley! Harry got dressed into the nicest clothes he had, making a mental note to buy more as soon as he could and went downstairs for breakfast after locking his room. Breakfast was the best Harry had ever had and Tom had made sure he had eaten enough. Harry had to admit, magic and Tom together made an excellent cook.

Once his plate of sausages was finished, Harry made his way to the empty courtyard he had seen the day before. He pulled out his new wand and frowned at it. It was obviously not a good match for him, so why was it sold to him? Unless the man had a deal with Dumbledore to sell him that particular wand… hmmm… Harry tapped the wall three times and watched appreciatively as the entrance to Diagon Alley formed.

He quickly decided the first thing he had to do was to get the blocks removed from his magic. It would not do him any good to face Voldemort with powers beyond his reach. Harry went straight to the magical items shop and bought a return portkey to St. Mungos. Harry felt rather lucky when the witch said that those were the only portkeys that didn't have to be registered. Now he had an escape and a way to get to the hospital without Dumbledore interfering.

Harry quickly activated his new portkey and found himself standing in a small lobby with an unmistakeable air of sickness. He shuddered and made his way slowly to the floor guide. Soon he found it. Spell damage- 4th floor. He grinned half-heartedly. Blocks were definitely spell damage. Harry made his way up the stairs thinking about how St. Mungos could really do with some muggle technology… such as elevators when he made it to the fourth floor. He shivered sympathetically as he passed the long term residents and saw a couple on beds next to each other. They looked so frail and yet so _young _at the same time. He wondered if his parents would have been their age… if his parents had known that couple but he pushed the thoughts away. His parents and their friends were only going to be remembered for all the times there were healthy. Soon he found the ward he was looking for- the ward for magic that had been working against a person for a long time. The plaque on the door announced that Healer Greengrass was in charge of the ward with Assistant Healer Finnegan. He went in and waited to be found. It didn't take long. Soon both healers were in the room asking him why he was there, though they both seemed friendly.

"…letter and it mentioned blocks on my magical core. I don't want to be handicapped at Hogwarts so I thought I'd come and check," said Harry nervously. They had to believe him! Thankfully it seemed they did as Healer Finnegan started to wave her wand at him while the male healer, Healer Greengrass kept him talking.

"Did the letter tell you who placed the blocks?" he asked casually, although Harry had seen him looking at the beginning of his results forming.

"Dumbledore," said Harry flippantly, inwardly smirking. Healer Finnegan gasped.

"Dumbledore?" she breathed.

"Yep," said Harry, "I don't think he was planning on telling me, either."

"Why would he place blocks on a boys magic?" asked Finnegan looking faint.

"Probably because even with them I have more power than him," said Harry conversationally. He had to work on keeping his face calm and blank when he saw the shock on the two healers faces. Apparently not many 11 year olds came in with the same problem as him. Just then the scan was finished and the healers were gaping at the results. Harry waited impatiently for them to stop imitating goldfish and asked them if he was right about the results.

"I think you had best see for yourself, sir," said Finnegan nervously.

_**Magical Blocks Scan**_

_Raw Power- 95% blocked_

_Metamorphmagus- 100% blocked_

_Empathetic- 100% blocked_

_Parseltounge- 80% blocked_

_Occlumency Ability- 80% blocked_

_Multianimagus- 100% blocked_

_Eidetic Memory- 50% blocked_

_Mage Sight- 100% blocked_

_Aura Sight- 100% blocked_

_Elemental abilities- 90% blocked _

_Shadow Walker- 100% blocked_

_#NB: partial soul piece belonging to Tom M Riddle trapped. Partially removed. _

Harry read through the parchment again mumbling about each one, unaware that the two healers were listening to him.

"… patronus with only 5% of my power, hmmm… that's not half bad… cool, I'm a metamorph, that will be fun… empathy… ooh, this might be difficult, I'll have to learn to control that pretty quickly… 80% of Parseltounge blocked… that would explain why I can't tell the difference between them… my occlumency shields are good! I only had 20% of my ability… hmmm… I'm going to have fun when the old coot tries Legilimency on me…Multianimagus! Glad I waited to try the potion… I already had almost perfect recall… My memory was blocked? Unbelievable… Mage sight! _Aura sight! _Incredible! Elemental abilities were blocked… wow… I've already done the revealing, that was incredible… shadow walker… ooh, this could be fun… _Voldemort's in my head? _It's the tar, of course! Glad I put it in the attic…" here, Harry began to giggle. "…I swept Voldemort into the attic when I was 6, oh, this is priceless!" He stopped abruptly, realising he had two curious Healers listening in on every word he spoke.

"Uh… so, can you remove the blocks?" he asked weakly.

"Of- of course, but you need to sleep, it… well… here's the sleeping draught," said Finnegan nervously. Harry mentally rolled his eyes.

"How long're you knocking me out for?" he asked casually, feeling anything _but _casual. Sleeping potions were dangerous! You couldn't just wake from them if you were in danger!

"An hour, sir. Now please drink the potion so we can get this over with!" said Greengrass, trying to act cool but his eyes betrayed him.

"Okay," said Harry more calmly than he felt and downed the potion in one gulp and letting the darkness take over his senses.

When Harry woke, he felt as though he had just been run over by a bus then attacked by all of the students at James' studio and when the healers asked, he told them that. He opened his eyes, blinked, then gasped in shock. Everything was so _clear! _The blocks had been damaging his vision and the glasses his aunt had pulled out of the collection bin were never much help. Now, he could see things! This was really going to help him in battle. He then realised that if he focused, he could _see _the magic around him. It was incredible! And the _auras… _he didn't know how to read them but they still looked magnificent. And Voldemort- the tar was gone! Then he spotted Greengrass staring at him.

"You had a glamour charm on you as well. You've now got dark red hair. Thankfully, long-term glamours can only alter hair and eye colour so apart from the hair, you look the same." Harry grinned, but then began to wonder what Hagrid would say when he saw him. Harry drank a strengthening solution and a pepper up potion before thanking the healers and walking towards the door. Just before he left the ward, he quickly sent two wandless _obliviates _at them and destroyed all of the parchment they had used to make records. He couldn't have Dumbledore finding out; although there was no doubt he would be suspicious of Harry's hair when he got to school. He had read about metamorphs and knew that it was incredibly draining on them to keep their features different and it wasn't recommended to be disguised for more than an hour or two each day. There was no way he could disguise himself at school. Once Harry was back in the foyer, which took a surprisingly short amount of time, he activated the portkey once again and landed back in Diagon Alley. He looked up and realised that it was past lunchtime so he headed back to the Leaky Cauldron for lunch. One butterbeer and a Shepard's pie later, Harry was ready to re-enter the Alley. Then he realised what his mother had asked him to do almost immediately. Heritage test. Harry quickly made his way to the tall white building and walked past both the poem and the two goblin guards. He was in the hall and then he wasn't, he was in the ritual/heritage room and the bowl on the desk held some of his blood which he was quite nervous about. Then the results came out.

_**Harry James Potter-Black**_

_**Heir to:**_

_Potter_

_Black_

_Evans_

_Gryffindor_

_Hufflepuff_

_Ravenclaw_

_Slytherin_

Harry gaped at the results. No wonder his mother had advised the test! He wouldn't be able to access the vaults until his 15th birthday and the properties wold remain locked until he came of age but it was nice to know that they were there. Then the goblin cleared his throat.

Harry listened in amazement. The goblins had told him that he was a valuable customer, hoped they would work well together, etcetera and then they really began to talk. They had not seen all that much of Harry, but they could sense his power and were shocked when he treated them as equals. They knew there was a war coming up, had heard the prophecy and as a nation had decided that they would abandon their neutrality and join _his side _in the war. Harry was shocked! Harry told them that he wasn't asking them to fight and not siding with Voldemort was enough when they dropped their final bombshell… they were willing to train him in goblin magic. Harry was shocked. The goblins never offered their skills to humans! However, they had told him that as long as he told no one else, they could train him in a time-compression room. Harry was once again shocked. Not only was the offer unbelievable, time compression was supposed to be impossible! Humans couldn't do it, at least. Harry knew he had little choice in the matter. Goblins had powerful magic and were fierce and extremely skilled in battle. He accepted the offer.

Harry was then told the specifics. 10 minutes would pass on the outside, but he would have a year inside. He would not age, but his mind, magic and body would develop to reflect the things he did in the room. He would not be allowed a wand in the room (goblins are forbidden from using wands so they're hardly going to help Harry with it!) and everything he needed would be provided. Apparently the goblins had been preparing for him. He then walked into the room along with his tutors and gasped in amazement. It wasn't a room- it was a forest! There was a freshwater creek and animals, trees and lots of other plants. He had a feeling the next year- 10 minutes- would be the most fun and challenging of his life so far. And it was.

Harry pushed a strand of long, sweaty red hair off his face and continued to spar. He was tiring rapidly but the goblin in front of him looked no better. It was the last day of his training and he was completing his 'trials' to prove that he had been successful. It was the last trial and then he would be finished. The first had been the least draining- it was a test of his gobbledegook skills and his memory had made it easy for him to learn so he spoke very fluently. The second had been a mental attack- the goblins were much more skilled than humans in occlumency and Legilimency so they worked hard with Harry to bring him up to their level. He now knew that Dumbledore stood no chance at attempting to invade his mind. The third had been a magical attack- only goblin magic was permitted and he was to duel them. Fourth had been a test of all of the skills he had discovered at the hospital and although the goblins could not do them themselves, they had been very good instructors on them. The last one was the one he was currently completing- weapons. It was the goblins greatest strength and Harry had made sure he had learned as much as possible from them and thanked James for all the skills he had given him. They were nowhere near sufficient, but they were much better than if he had gone into the room knowing nothing and unused to combat. He mentally shivered at the thought.

Finally, Harry broke through his goblin opponent's defence. He held his swords up and pressed his dagger to the goblin's throat.

"Do you yield?" he growled softly.

"Never!" cried the goblin and Harry held the dagger more firmly at his throat.

"Do you yield," he growled again in the goblin's ear. The goblin dropped his weapons.

"Yes," he groaned, "you have proven yourself worthy, Lightningbrow. Wash and then we shall leave the time compression. Remember that only 10 minutes has passed and you are still 10 years old." Harry nodded his thanks and went to clean up. He looked down at himself and as impressed. For a 10- almost 11 year old, he looked incredible. His long red hair was tied back in a low pony although he had a few wild strands that refused to stay in place. He had a dark tan covering his body with lots of battle scars littered over his muscles. He looked strong, but he was still very lithe. He was definitely built for speed and endurance rather than heavy weapons although he had just proven himself quite capable of handling the lighter weapons with fierce skill. He was tall for his age but it looked right on him. His bright green eyes sparkled mischievously but they were also showing signs of fatigue from his trials. He looked like a warrior and a hero. Which, he reminded himself, the magical world believed him to be. Harry sighed, and then pulled on the clothing he had worn when he entered the bank. It would not do for the customers to see him leaving in different clothing than that which he had come in wearing, though he doubted anyone would really notice and his looks had changed quite dramatically for it not to matter much, anyway. But the goblins had insisted. Once he was ready, he picked up the weapons he had made for himself- they weren't technically goblin made, but they were made the same way, and were custom for him. No one else would be able to wield them as well as he did. He slid them into his holsters and attached them to his body before going to stand at the door. It was time to leave. Once all of his tutors were gathered around the door with him, he took a deep breath and swung it open. He felt the time compression fall around him and then spotted a goblin smirking at them.

Harry left Gringotts soon afterwards, feeling sufficiently exhausted. He made his way to the Leaky Cauldron as quickly as he could. He felt Tom looking at him strangely- he knew he looked a lot different to the way he had that morning but he wasn't going to ever be able to explain- so he kept walking up to his room and collapsed on the bed, completely forgetting about a meal called dinner.

The next morning, Harry woke at 5 as all the goblins did and went for a run (2 hour long sprint) in muggle London. By 7, he was done and made his way back to the Cauldron for breakfast (pancakes and a banana milkshake) before getting ready for the day. Today was going to be his shopping spree. He was excited.

First stop was Madam Malkin's where he made the older woman's day by announcing that he needed a full wardrobe. He was taken hostage by the woman and was forced to endure what was in his opinion- the worst torture routine he had ever faced. It seemed to take _hours _but finally he had a whole new set of robes that weren't school uniform and muggle clothing as well. He made sure that he got extra exercise clothing. The lady had thought that 3 pairs of expensive running shoes and 12 sweat shirts was a little excessive but she didn't try to discourage him. Clearly not many people were willing to buy 17 sets of robes at once and then enter the muggle clothing section and buy at least one of everything Harry shrugged. He didn't really care what she though as he wasn't recognised by her. _Must be the new long red hair, _he thought. It was really going to be a while before the public realised he wasn't a clone of his father. Next on his list were several different coloured notebooks charmed to never run out of pages. He got one for all the different subjects he would be studying, both at Hogwarts and by himself. He stocked up on several more quills, including a few dictation quills as his mother had not spoken highly about the history professor and if he had the same one he was not going to bother writing his own notes. He could always read them later. More parchment was added and then he spotted the thing he had really come in for. A magical book bag. Charmed featherlight and had an undetectable extension charm, the soft green bag was resistant to tears, spills and charms. It had several sections, one for books and another for ink, quills, parchment, and a wand and potions equipment. Harry thought it was magnificent. He bought it without even looking at the price; he knew it would be worth it.

Flourish and Blotts was the next shop around and Harry delighted in being able to buy all the books he had refrained from going near with Hagrid. The books on elemental magic and empathy were the most anticipated as he was really looking forward to learning to use it but they were also the most difficult to find. Finally, with help from the owner they managed to locate a large book on each element (_The complete guide to being an elemental- fire/water/air/earth)_ buried under a huge pile in the back room. They didn't have any others on elemental magic and Empaths were encouraged to speak to Madam Pomfrey if they were discovered before they graduated from Hogwarts.

The next store was the Magical Menagerie which sold all sorts of interesting magical (and non-magical) creatures. Harry was immediately drawn to the snakes and was quite amused by the things they were hissing. Harry quickly spotted a medium sized green and blue boomslang with large black eyes. He really liked it and felt attached to the snake already. _Hello, _he hissed. _I'm not going to hurt you. Do you have a name?_

_You are a ssspeaker… It isss an honour. My name isss Clarusss Squamisss… but I go by Clarusss normally,_ _ssspeaker_

_Okay, Clarusss… My name isss Harry. Would you like to come with me? I could get you lotsss of frogsss eggsss to eat and a warm place to sssleep_

_I would like to go with you, ssspeaker_

_Okay, I will let you out… curl up around my arm but pleassse don't sssqueeze me too hard…_

_I am not a conssstrictor, ssspeaker.___

_Of courssse you're not, you are venomousss, I apologissse for offending you…_

The young snake curled up around Harry's writs and he was soon walking around the shop getting a large tank for Clarus and lots of frogs' eggs. He knew that boomslangs preferred live frogs but he didn't want to watch that. Clarus could hunt for himself if he wanted live food.

The apothecary supplied Harry with some extra potions ingredients that weren't in the basic supplies and then Harry was off to the luggage store. Hagrid had forgotten to get a trunk for Harry as it wasn't on the list and Harry was going to take advantage of that by getting a good one.

The small store was stacked from floor to ceiling with trunks of all sizes and colours. Harry knew that he would be spending a while in the store as there was no particular system to the piles, it was just luck. Finally, he found it. It wasn't wooden, which was traditional- it looked as though it had been created out of dragonhide with metal keeping it solid. It was mostly a forest green colour with wood-ish brown as well. It had four compartments although only the first was noticeable from the outside. The first and fourth compartments were general compartments although Harry knew the fourth would house his mother's shrunken trunk with the food in it and his other clothing (not school uniform- they belonged in the first compartment with the other items he had bought with Hagrid) The second compartment had been set up specifically for storing potions and ingredients although Harry was sure it would be easy enough to set a cauldron up in there as well. The third compartment was a library with a clever retrieval system where you either stated the name or author of the book and it would come to the top, or you would scribble a search into the magical parchment at the top of the compartment and any books relating to that subject would come forward. Harry loved it, and knew that he would also enjoy warding it. He knew that goblin and human wards could work quite nicely together if it was set up properly.

Once Harry had everything he needed, he made his way to the shop he had been anticipating and dreading at the same time for the whole day. He wasn't sure that he could trust Ollivander- the man had sold him a terrible wand, so he made his way into Knockturn Alley to the wandmaker near the mouth of that alley. He was quite relived to walk into the shop- it was only half a block from the entrance but he felt as though he was far enough in.

Harry began to explain about Ollivander's poor wand matching skills and the other wandmaker agreed to help him- but this one only made custom wands. Harry was getting more and more nervous. Then they began. The wandmaker, Williamson, got out several boxes. He held out the first pair and opened them in front of Harry.

"Close yer eyes and pick up the items tha' yer feel the strongest pull from. Don't worry if ya pick up more 'n one, multi-core wands do 'appen," he said. Harry put his hands over the box and immediately felt a 'pull' from four different directions. The first two were both phoenix feathers, one was from an ice phoenix and the other was a normal one. He then pulled out a dragon heartstring and the last one was a phial of basilisk venom. Williamson whistled.

"This is goin' to be a dangerous wand," he muttered, sounding more awed than nervous. He then held out the different woods and gave him the same instructions. Harry pulled out oak, holly and maple. The wandmaker was once again shocked.

"Son, you're young but I think you'd benefit from a staff. They're rare 'cause not many people can 'andle their power- but fer those who can, they're very useful. I think it'd be interestin' to try one with yeh as yer easily the most powerful person I've worked with. D'you want to try?"

"Umm… okay," said Harry nervously.

"Right, well, I'll begin puttin' this wand together and I want you to get a drop or two of your blood in this phial an' add one of your own hairs to the mix. We'll 'ave to add another liquid and somethin' else to it later but we'll work that out when we get there. Anyway, once you've got the blood and hair, put a cork in the phial and go over to those gems. You'll probably get a pull from more than one, but this time pick out a maximum of 5, the strongest of all of them. Once you're done, call me. So Harry set to work. He first pricked his finger and let his blood dribble into the phial. He then ripped a hair out of his head as he knew that using magic would weaken the mixture. Once that was made he went over to the gems and immediately felt pulls from 5 gems. _Perfect, _he thought sarcastically, _exactly the right amount. _He pulled them out and called for Williamson, knowing the man would explain the details of each gem.

(Agate- attracts strength and helps fight draining influences. Agate balances different energies and helps to awaken talents.

Citrine- Helps to open the mind to new thoughts. Balances impatience and restlessness and helps to promote optimism.

Garnet- symbolises passionate devotion to family, friends and purpose in life. Garnet stimulates the senses and increases vitality and stamina.

Onyx- Repels negativity and enhances determination and perseverance.

Topaz- Clams temper and gives strength. Improves mind clarity, focus and increases strength and confidence.) The gems would not _give _him the traits; rather they worked in harmony with him to loan energy to the staff, making it important for the gems to have similar characteristics to the wielder.

The wandmaker came out and took the phial off Harry.

"We need to add a few more ingredients to the mix, one liquid an' one solid core," he said before handing Harry two new boxes.

"Pull out the one ingredient you 'ave the strongest reaction to from each box." Harry held his hand out and immediately felt pulls from multiple ingredients and focused on finding the strongest. Soon he had them both and handed them to the man. He held up the liquid.

"Phoenix tears," he said conversationally and added them into the phial. Then the solid core came out and Williamson gasped.

"Nundu 'eartstring," he gasped, "This has been 'ere for years, no one 'as 'ad the power to work with it. Well… err… Maybe you should come back later so I can finish the wand and staff, although the staff'll need another drop of yer blood to seal it and tie it to yeh… but it'll take me a few hours… yes…" the wandmaker set to work, still mumbling about kids with too much power. Harry chuckled and left the store after saying he'd be back in an hour and a half.

Harry spent the time sitting in his room at the Leaky Cauldron having lunch and writing his first letter to James.

_Hi James-_

_Thanks for the tips; they're definitely coming in handy! How are you? I forgot to tell you before I left that Jonathon Green needs help with his broadswords- he has been working with me but now that might have to change. Oh, and if Tim attacks from behind without once more, he's been threatened with suspension from the studio for a month. On to other matters, Diagon Alley is amazing! I know you told me about it, but it's really different being here. I bought all the things you suggested, and the school representative, Hagrid, bout me an early birthday present! He bought my this owl, Hedwig. I also got a boomslang! His name is Clarus. I can't wait to get to Hogwarts, but I'm going to miss the studio, you and the rest of the staff heaps! Staying at the Leaky Cauldron until school starts to be on the safe side. (You never know with Vernon!) Can't wait to hear back from you and listen to all the news from the studio!_

_Harry P._

He smiled and let the parchment dry before rolling it up and giving it to Hedwig as her first ever delivery.

Later that day, Harry went back to pick up his new wand and staff- they were perfect, down to the shrinking charm on the staff and Williamson even threw in a pair or auror-grade wand holsters for free. One was for his phoenix feather wand (The wandmaker had told him about Priori Incantatem) and the other for his custom wand. As the staff was tied to him, he could summon it from anywhere but he shrunk it to wand size and placed it in another holster he had clipped to his belt.

The next morning, it took Harry a few minutes to realise what day it was. His birthday! He had never really enjoyed his birthdays, but he had been looking forward to this one as he had decided to drink the Animagus Revealing potion the day he turned 11. It was a relatively easy potion to brew and only took an hour so after breakfast he got to work on it, triple checking the recipe beforehand- he did _not _want to mess it up! Finally, at 6am, it was ready. He carefully placed the potion in phials and put his supplies away before making his way over to the bed, laying down and drinking it as quickly as he could, wrinkling his nose. Almost immediately, he was asleep.

_Harry opened his eyes. He was lying face-down on the ground. He could feel old, decaying leaves beneath him, but they were… comforting? He looked up and realised how __**big **__all the trees and plants around him were. He went to move forwards when he realised he had neither arms nor legs. He turned around, puzzled, to realise that he had more flexibility than normal. Then he saw himself. He was long and skinny, and had black scales! He then began to examine himself, having remembered the potion he was using. Finally, he worked it out. A Black Mamba!_

_The dream changed. _

_Harry watched as he changed from a large Hungarian Horntail to a small black kitten and finally a stag. _

Harry spent the rest of the holidays trying to begin to harness his elemental powers and learning to shadow walk which he found easy, if not a little frightening. Very soon it was September 1st and Harry was preparing to shadow walk to Kings Cross, preferring it to the Knight Bus. He checked that all of his basic school supplies were in the general compartment of his trunk. His other potions ingredients and books went into their respective compartments and his other belongings went into the 4th compartment along with his mother's trunk. Harry then triple-checked the wards on the 2nd, 3rd and 4th compartments- both human and goblin and was sure that no one apart from a Gringotts cursebreaker would be able to get in… and it would take them a long time. He then shrunk the trunk and shoved it in his robe pocket before _walking _to Kings Cross. Harry quickly found himself in a shadowed corner on platform 9 ¾. The emotions in the place were so strong that Harry's untrained Empathy skills were going haywire. He wasn't going to last long so he decided to focus on one person's emotions only. He saw a plump, red-haired woman and focused on her. She had greed and anticipation rolling off her. It took Harry a while, but he finally realised they were focused on _him! _He frowned. Why _greed_? He decided to put his basic Legilimency training with the goblins to the test and scanned the woman's surface thoughts. He was disgusted. He wasn't going anywhere _near _her… or any of her children until they prove themselves. That was when Harry decided to morph for the train ride as he knew that the woman's youngest son- Ron- was going to be looking for Harry Potter. Even though the glamour charm had been removed, he felt it would be best if he didn't tempt fate and slowly gave himself dull blonde hair and dumbedore-ishly blue eyes. Unfortunately metamorphs couldn't change muscle or bone structure, but he guessed no one would expect an 11 year old to have his body. He then climbed into a compartment, put a simple locking charm on the door (Well, he looked no older than 13- it wouldn't do him any good if he did anything more advanced!) and remained undisturbed for the whole trip.

When Harry got off the train (after discreetly morphing back in the corridor) he heard Hagrid calling out for the first years almost immediately.

"Firs' years this way! Firs' years, C'mon now, don' be shy! Firs' years, this way!" Harry mentally rolled his eyes and walked over to the half-giant.

"'Ello again, Harry!"

"Hey Hagrid," said Harry wearily but Hagrid seemed oblivious to his lack of enthusiasm and was more interested in discussing why Harry suddenly had red hair.

"When you came to pick me up, Dudley had accidentally dyed my hair black the day before and it stayed that way for the week," Harry lied smoothly, and Hagrid seemed to believe him. They walked down the slippery path and more than once a first year found themselves on the ground and Harry was thankful for his goblin training- it would take a lot more than this path for him to lose his footing. They were soon at the boats and Harry got in the furthest one followed by two girls and a boy.

"I'm Susan Bones," said the brunette cheerfully.

"Greengrass, Daphne Greengrass," said the other in a friendly way.

"N-Neville Longbottom," said the boy nervously.

"Harry," said Harry shortly, before he decided to steer the water into safer territory.

"What house do you think you'll be in?" he asked, genuinely curious.

"Slytherin or Ravenclaw are most likely. My parents were both in them," said Daphne.

"My whole family have been in Hufflepuff," said Susan cautiously.

"Both my parents were in Gryffindor but my gran thinks I'll be in H-Hufflepuff," said Neville nervously.

"Now we just need a Gryffindor and we'll have the lot in this boat," said Harry cheerfully.

"Where are you going, Harry?" asked Susan curiously, deciding he wasn't prejudiced against her because of her being Hufflepuff material.

"Hmmm… hadn't really thought about it. I'm ambitious enough for Slytherin, but not terrible cunning. Hufflepuff, maybe, I'm not afraid of hard work, but it is hard to earn my loyalty… I like learning but I don't think my methods would be appreciated in Ravenclaw, and I'm probably brave enough for Gryffindor but prefer to think before I leap," said Harry thoughtfully and the others could tell he wasn't trying to brag.

"So you'll just have to wait and see," said Neville.

"Hmmm…" said Harry noncommittally. He knew that Slytherin would be dangerous for him and he wasn't planning on getting in there and he didn't really think Hufflepuff was all that likely either.

"Where did your parents go?"

"Oh, they were both in Gryffindor," said Harry.

"Huh." The four of them began to get more comfortable around each other until Daphne finally voiced the question they had all wanted answered.

"What's your surname, Harry?" Harry gulped. There was no getting around the question but he had wanted more time!

"Potter," he said reluctantly.

"Potter? _Harry Potter?_"

"Shhh… the other boats might hear you! The three of you are _way _too loud," he said the last part in a teasing voice to show he didn't really mind.

"On to other matters," Harry continued as if nothing had happened, "can we meet up again no matter what house we're in? I think we could become good friends."

"Sure!"

"O-okay"

"Yes." Harry grinned. Neville was the most nervous but he could be brought out of his shell but Daphne, he could tell, would remain overly cautious for a long time.

Soon, they were at the other side of the lake. The boats bumped against the bank and the first years clambered out. They followed Hagrid up a narrow path, thankfully less slippery than the one down to the lake and they watched as Hagrid knocked on the giant castle doors. They swung open soon after.


End file.
